Papua New Guinea 2012-213

Papua New Guinea is located in the Coral Triangle, the planet’s richest source of marine biodiversity, and its forests are some of the most abundant in the world in terms of diversity of plant species. Over three months, more than 200 people explored its ecosystems, from the bottom of the Bismarck Sea to the summit of Mount Wilhelm, its highest peak.

Assisted by Papuan para-ecologists, researchers, technicians, amateur naturalists and students from 21 countries collected as many specimens and as much data as they could. This huge inventory will document the region’s species, many of which are still unknown, and will attempt to answer a fundamental question - how many living species inhabit our planet?